Move Over Carla Bruni…First Lady Michelle Obama’s Got Spunk

First Lady Michelle Obama continues to make waves every where she goes. The First Lady was accompanying President Obama to a Buckingham Palace reception on Wednesday; where Mrs. Obama clearly made a great impression with the 82-year-old monarch. So much so, that the queen set aside protocol, to briefly wrap her arm around the First Lady in a rare public show of affection.
Ms. Obama, who literally is a foot taller than Queen Elizabeth, also wrapped her arm around the monarch’s shoulder and back. This comes to me as total shock knowing the “stiff upper lips” that is most prominent during a royal visit. Over the years it has been quite perplexing to me, to see what I would consider lukewarm affection between the various dignitaries that have gone on a royal visit with the queen. Given the looks of things and even with this simple gesture, it I so obvious that time is changing on the international forefront. Buckingham Palace spokesman considered it a goodwill gesture and stated that “It was a mutual and spontaneous display of affection,” he said. “We don’t issue instructions on not touching the queen.”
Wednesday’s reception was followed by a dinner at Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Downing Street home, where the leaders’ spouses were joined by notable British women, including “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling and Olympic gold medal runner Kelly Holmes. “Michelle walks in and she is as she seems,” Holmes told reporters Thursday. “So warm, engaging, a beautiful, beautiful lady — and I quickly got my photo in the middle of her and Sarah Brown,” the prime minister’s wife. Mrs. Obama also seemed to win over the often feral British press. The last time a first lady made such a hit in Britain was last year with French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s wife, the former fashion model and songwriter Carla Bruni. The BBC described Mrs. Obama as her husband’s co-star rather than supporting act — appropriate for a Harvard-educated lawyer.